nostalgia day four

Dust Devil walked into his village for the first time in many cycles. It was little more than a desolate skeleton of what it once had been; the houses that had once been warm and homely were now little more than burned out shells, the dirt path beneath his paws much harder than he recalled, the streets no longer filled with the playful laughter of the town's children. He recalled the day everything had changed with a shudder. The blazing heat of the fire against his fur. The smoke and ash stinging his eyes, burning his lungs. The sounds of people crying out for their loved ones they'd lost track of in the flames. The terror he felt at the thought of dying that day, when there was so much he still had to do. And when he was clear of the blaze, the immense sadness he felt at seeing his entire life up to that point gone, just like that. They had lost many lives that day. And all for what? For nothing. Their loss had been meaningless.

But that was all behind him now.

As he continued his walk, he came across the community well. Living in a land such as theirs was difficult, particularly in the dry season when most natural water sources dried up. As such, the well had been a life source for their small community. Curious, he started to pull up the bucket. Though the rope was frayed and should have been repaired long ago- in fact, it was a miracle the it had survived this long at all- it held the weight of the bucket and its contents fairly well. Indeed, when the bucket surfaced, it was filled to the brim with fresh water. Since the well cover had been destroyed in the fire, the water was a little dustier than it had been in his youth, but that was of no matter to him. After quenching his thirst, he moved on.

He choked up a little when he saw it. The house in front of him was achingly familiar, everything from the crumbling walls to the now empty doorframe and the hollow windows speaking to him of a time long ago, when everything seemed like it would all be okay.

This was his home.

He took a hesitant step inside its burned out interior. It had only been a small house, one of only three rooms between the eleven of them. He remembered with a smile how his adopted parents had loved to take in children who had nowhere else to go, just like he had been when he was very young. it was a good thing that they hadn't minded sleeping on the floor though- space had been somewhat minimal most of the time. Family bonding sessions took place every evening when he and the other kids would tussle to see who got to sleep on the bed that evening. He'd always be one of the winners. Sleeping on the bed every night would be selfish though, he had always thought, so between them they organised a schedule the would follow. This, however, did not stop the tussles, which they continued as 'preparation' for the real world, as they called it.

Why did you go there? You knew that going to your old home would only bring you pain, yet here you are. Get back to camp, Dust. Stop being a fool.

Dust Devil growled loudly and lashed his tail. Leave me alone, Cato. I told you I wanted some time to myself.

If you don't come back right now, I'll-

He forcibly shut off his connection to Cato, the older serval's voice fading out suddenly.

He took the last few steps into his home, thoughts disappearing into memories once again as he sat down mounfully and the setting sun bathed the room in a fiery orange glow.